Business and Professional Communication Quarterly Dec 2023 Open Access

Transnational Technical Communication: English as a Business Lingua Franca in Engineering Workplaces

Amy Hodges The University of Texas at Arlington ; Leslie Seawright Missouri State University

Abstract

Recent scholarship argues for increased attention to students’ linguistic diversity and intercultural communication competence. Our study examined the experiences of 10 working engineers who had graduated from an English-medium international branch campus in the Arabian Gulf. An analysis of their interviews reveals the complex role of English as a business lingua franca (BELF) in workplace communication. Interviewees’ reflections about their university experience indicate that they had not previously understood the full rhetorical and communicative nature of BELF. We provide implications for instructors who wish to provide methods that center intercultural professional communication and decenter English as a standardized, static language.

Journal
Business and Professional Communication Quarterly
Published
2023-12-01
DOI
10.1177/23294906231154860
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Topics
rhetorical criticism technical communication professional writing translingualism race and writing
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (3)

  1. Liu et al. (2025)
    Enhancing Technical Communication Skills Among Chinese TVET Students: A Needs A…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  2. Peltonen et al. (2025)
    Bridging the Research-Practice Gap in Business English Classrooms
    Business and Professional Communication Quarterly
  3. Kokkonen et al. (2024)
    Teaching Interculturality: Considering Three Different Cultural Approaches in I…
    Business and Professional Communication Quarterly

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